Posted 2 years ago
kwqd
(1122 items)
This porcelain Japanese tea caddy is 3.75" high x 3.5" in diameter. It was imported by Takahashi which was a San Francisco importer of Japanese pottery, metal and wooden cultural objects starting in the 1960s. The Takahashi label is on the inside of the lid.
My caddy is not marked, but I found several examples of similarly decorated pieces which are probably from the same kiln which are marked, so I added a copy of that mark to image #3.
https://www.sfheritage.org/news/takahashi-trading-co-building-approved-for-landmark-work-program/
I have been looking for a traditional Japanese tea caddy for quite awhile and finally found this. It was identified as a lidded jar, but because of the very broad lip on the base, I am pretty certain it was meant to be used as a tea caddy. If it had been identified as a tea caddy, it would probably have cost three or four times what I paid for it. The very broad lip on the base is very common on tea caddies and helps to tightly seal the base when the lid is on. It is also very similar in size to many verified caddies that I have seen.
I am not sure if the design was done using transfers or if it is hand painted. It may be a combination of those two techniques. No idea of which kiln made it. Calling it a mystery since the kiln is not known.
I found several similarly themed tea related items dated to the 1970s or 1980s, probably from the same kiln on online auction sites, some also from Takahashi. Guessing this caddy was part of a set:
https://www.antigotrunk.com/shop/collectibles/collectibles-mugs/teacups-japanese-yunomi-style-red-crowned-crane-and-waves-takahashi-set-of-2-japan/
tinyurl.com/3v5jd32r
Ha! I found another example on CW!!
https://www.collectorsweekly.com/stories/136290-asian-dish-with-lidll
Gorgeous tea caddy with beautiful crane design. Love Takahashi they have beautiful items
Thanks, Jenni! I agree. It is starting to get kind of spendy, too!
Thanks Kevin, Jenni, Vynil33rpm, fortapache and BHIFOS!
Thanks vcal!
Beautiful tea caddy!! Nice find!
Very vibrant and bold colors, nice find!
Thanks jscott0363! It fills a hole in my collection.
Thanks Mrsytyndall! The design is pretty recognizable so I have hopes of identifying the kiln that made it....
Thanks for loving my tea caddy Mrstyndall, jscott0363, Searching1 and dav2no1!
Thanks Vynil33rpm!
Thanks for your comments, Eileen! Hopefully, I will also be able to figure out who made it!
Thanks for loving my tea caddy Eileen and Cisum!
Thanks Karen!
Thank you valentino97!
Thanks for taking a look at my Japanese tea caddy WhenIsraelbelieves, LovelyPat and aura!
Thank you clockerman!
The orange is so bold and the flying crane is out of his element being over the ocean!
this i don,t understand when it are 2 crains its social antroposophically the ultimate romance of
the collateral question are we japanese equivalent of an of a chinese yunwen cloud design ( answer = no), actually we are in scene the of total bliss for eternity probably
this is an example of the principle of overemphazing because because the clouds are karakusa which augments the symbolic meaning
what are we in , precisely i don,t know the intention is probably a wave and crane design with a pseudo type of guanghu shading of the crane late fine the siecle ( light chalk white with heavy black ) but this is 1970 up
i don,t known the mark
its nickle and dime stuff, but i love it,
Thanks for your comments waki! It was pretty popular stuff as I can find many examples of it. I get a buzz from the colors, too!